Railway-car.



4Nu.f672,564. Patented Apr. 23, |901. L. G. MONTNY.

RAILWAY CAR.

(Application filed Oct. 3, 1900.)

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No. 672,564. j Patented Apr. 23,`|9o|.

L. e. Momouv.

RAILWAY CAR.

(Application led Oct. 3, 1900.

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LIBERTY G. MONTONY,

OF TROY, NEW YORK.

RAILWAY-CAR.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N0. 672,564, dated April 23, 1901.

Application led October 3, 1900. Serial No. 31,852. (No model.)

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, LIBERTY GILBERT MoN- TONY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Troy, .in the county of Rensselaer and State of New York, have invented a new and original Improvement in Railway-Cars, of

which the following is a specification, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, like letters of reference on the various figures indicating like parts.

The invention is an improvement in railway-cars of that class having cross-seats and an outside footboard extending the length of the car and especially applicable to open surface cars wherein ingress and egress are. al-

ternately from opposite sides of the car.

` be folding.

Open surface cars as now commonly constructed are provided on each side of the car `with a single footboard extending the length of the car,`either iXed or folding or with a series of steps, the bottom one of which may Mypresent invention has for its object to provide-for two or more folding steps or footboards anda means of operating and supporting the same in a folded position.

`Figure 1` is an end view of a car, showing the two steps on oneside open and those on the opposite side folded up. Fig. 2 is a par- `tial side view of a car with steps open. Fig.

3 is a view on an enlarged scale showing the steps open, their folded position indicated by broken lines. Fig. is a similar view showing a modied form of construction.

Referring to the drawings, the car-body is provided on each of its opposite sides with a series of hangers or brackets G, preferably rigidly connected with the car-body, as by bolting their upper ends thereto and connecting their lower ends by a longitudinal bar M, which bar is connected at intervals with ther car-body by means of the diagonal braces L. On each of the opposite sides of the car I provide a plurality of folding steps A B, independently hinged to the respective brackets on that side of the'car, each of said brackets forming a common support for said steps. The steps may be of a length adapted to extend throughout the whole or a part of the length of the car, as desired. The hinge connections between each bracket and the respective steps are in approximately the same vertical line, the lower step B being prefer ably made of a somewhat greater depth than the upper step A, as shown, so as to project its tread portion outwardly beyond that of the upper step when the steps are unfolded or openf The steps being so constructed and hinged are adapted to be folded up to approXimately vertical positions, as shown at the left-hand side of Fig. l and indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 3, in which position they occupy but little more space than would a single folding step and less than a single ixed step, being practically within the confines of the car-body.

As a preferred means for folding the stepsh and supporting the steps in a folded position I provide an operating-bar C, hinged at its lower end to the outer end of the lower step B, said bar extending upwardly to a position accessible to a person on the carplatform. The bar is provided on its upper end with a handle, wherebythe same may be operated,

and the dashboard is provided with a supporting device E for detachably holding the bar in a raised position and with a slidewaysupport D for guiding the bar in its reciprocating movements and supporting it when lowered, which supporting and guiding devices may be of any known form. Thelower step can thus be operated by the bar to cause it to assume either the open position shown at theright-ha'nd side of Fig. l or the closed position shown at the left-hand side of said figure. This operating-bar is also provided with an oiset or lug K, adapted to engage a projection from the end of the upper step A, which projection is preferably in the form of a pin K', supported in the path of the lug K and adapted to be engaged thereby to fold and support said upper step when said bar is operated to fold the lower step, as above described. The upper step is thus supported in a folded position, as indicated by dotted lines in Fig. 3 and shown at the left-hand side of Fig. l.

The4 several steps may, if desired, be provided With counterweights H and F. In Fig. 4 I have shown a modified form of my invention, the supporting-bracket being partly broken away and not. shown, as the hinge connections are substantially the saine as shown in Fig. 3. In this construction the TOO operating-bar C `is omitted, and the steps are provided with a connecting-chain C', which is adapted to support both steps in afolded position by passing an intermediate portion of the chain overa hook C2 on the body of the car.

Byconnectng the operating-bar C with the outer end of the lower step and causing its oset K to engagethe pin K on the outer end of the upper step the bar directly supports the swinging ends of both steps when folded, and when lowered said bar forms an auxiliary support for the outer end of the lower step, which, being of considerable depth, affords unfavorable leverage in resisting the weight of persons stepping upon its outer edge and is subject to great strain.

What I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

1. In a car, the combination with the carbody, of a folding step; a permanently-located hinge connection between the inner end of said step and a fixed bracket on the car-body; and a rigid supporting and operating bar directly connecting the outer end of said step with supports on the car-,body,when said step is either folded or extended, substantially as described.

2. In a car, the combination with the carbody, of a plurality of folding steps on the same side of the car having separate permanently-located hinge-connections with rigid brackets. on the car-body; and common connecting mechanism between 'the outer ends of the respective steps and the car-body for connecting the outer end of each folded step Y described.

3. In a car, the combination with the carbody, of a plurality of folding steps on the same side of the car; a permanently-located hinge connection between the inner end of Veach stepand a xed bracket on the carlbody;` a rigid support-ing and operating bar pivoted to the outer end of one of said steps erases and extending directly to the car-platform; supports on the car-body for said bar in either a raised or lowered position; and intereugaging mechanism on said bar and the outer end of another of said steps, whereby both the steps can be folded andthe outer end of each directly connected with and supported by the car-body when folded and the outer end of one of said steps is directly connected with and supported by the car-bodywhen extended, substantially as described.

4. ln a car, the combination with the carbody; of an upper folding step, and a lower folding step of greater depth than said upper step each having separate permanently-located hinge connections in the same vertical line directly with rigid brackets on the4 carbody; a rigid supporting and operating bar pivotally connected with the outer end of the lower and deeper step and extending directly to the car-platform; interengaging mechanism on said bar and said upper step, and supports on the car-body for said barin both its raised and lowered positions, whereby said bar directly connects the outer end of the lower and deeper step with the car-bod y when lowered, and forms a common means for'folding both steps and connecting the outer end of each directly with the car-body when folded, substantially as described.

5. In a car, the combination with a plu-I rality of independently-hinged folding steps on the same side ofthe car, of an operatingbar, C, pivoted to the outer end of a lower step; an offset, K, on said bar; a pin, K', on the outer end of an upper step'in the path of said olfset and adapted to be engaged thereby to fold and support saidupper step when said barv is operated to fold said lower step, substantially as described.

' L. G. MONTONY.

Witnesses:

NORMAN B..SHERRY, v D. H. MoNToNY. 

